


between part and meet

by Emlee_J



Category: Kingdom Hearts
Genre: Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Falling In Love, Fluff and Angst, Friends to Strangers to Friends to Lovers, M/M, Memory Loss, No-Keyblade AU
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-03-21
Updated: 2019-03-21
Packaged: 2019-11-26 23:55:31
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,074
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18187163
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Emlee_J/pseuds/Emlee_J
Summary: Four years ago Riku's best friend Sora simply vanished from Destiny Islands without a trace. When Riku hears he's in nearby Twilight Town he immediately leaves to find him, only to find a Sora that isn't the quite same as the one he lost.A story of losing your best friend, finding them, becoming their best friend all over again, and falling in love along the way.





	between part and meet

**Author's Note:**

> Back on my bullshit with this idea that just wouldn't leave me alone. 
> 
> Mainly I just wanted Riku having a very big Gay Panic at seeing an older Sora after a few years apart and marvelling at how well puberty treated that boy. And then this happened. 
> 
> This is also my first attempt at something resembling a plot so uhh we'll see how this goes!

It was Thursday when Riku felt hope again.

Riku was spending his Thursday the same way he had spent almost every Thursday for the past four years – accosting the locals at the market.

“Sorry, excuse me, have you seen this boy?”

The middle-aged woman peering over vegetables glanced briefly at the photo Riku was holding out in her direction. She shook her head, going back to her shopping. “No, sorry.”

Riku murmured a quiet thanks, knowing the woman wasn’t listening anyway. He slid the worn and crumpled photograph into his jacket pocket and moved away from the greengrocer’s stall. He slouched off down the street of the fresh food market, half-heartedly glancing at the shoppers dotted around the stalls, mentally ticking off who he had already asked.

It was the middle of the afternoon, and the market was quiet as a result, most people there to buy a few items quickly and then leave. Some of the stalls were already starting to pack up as their stock of produce for the day dwindled. Riku had already asked all of the sellers that he had hadn’t already pestered recently this morning, and most of them had waved him off irritably.

_“No, I haven’t seen the kid, you asked me last month.”_

_“Still looking for him? I ain’t seen him, sorry.”_

Some of them didn’t even bother replying, just shaking their heads and focusing on customers who had money to spend.

Riku heaved a deep sigh and sat on an empty crate by a stall selling fruit that had closed about an hour ago. He’d had no luck again today, the same as every day for the past four years.

Reaching into his pocket, Riku drew out the photograph again. The edges were tattered and worn, the paper gone thin. The photo depicted a boy, a teenager, with warm brown hair and eyes the brightest shade of blue. He was grinning at the camera, holding two large ice creams that were starting to melt and drip over his hands. He was dressed in a shirt that was an obnoxious shade of red and clashed horribly with his bright yellow shoes. A silver chain was around his neck, a pendant in the shape of a crown in the middle.

Riku traced the boy’s features with his fingertip gently. It had been four years since he’d last seen Sora, four years since his best friend had just disappeared seemingly without a trace. One day life just was rolling by as normal, until Sora didn’t show up for school. Or the day after, or the next. A missing person’s report was filed, but the local police had only had a moderate amount of interest in the case.

Sora had been reasonably self-sufficient for a while before he went missing. His parents were away frequently on fishing expeditions and had died in a sailing accident a few years ago. Destiny Islands had a relatively small community in comparison to the larger towns and cities on the mainland, and the local authorities were happy to just let Sora keep living in his parents’ house, if only to save on paperwork. The house was paid for, and the neighbours next door were a retired couple who were happy to help Sora if he required any assistance. Rather than relocating the boy, it was easier to let him continue living as he had been.

When he went missing, there had been a small, perfunctory search of the local area, a few interviews and some posters went up. The police had found no obvious signs of any foul play, and had concluded Sora’s disappearance to be another case of a teenage runaway. With no family at home, and the money his parents had left, it would’ve been easy to pack up and leave.

Riku had spent many hours at the local station insisting Sora would never just leave out of the blue, that it was completely out of character for him to just simply vanish, but it fell on deaf ears. He had tried pointing out Sora’s borderline abysmal school grades to suggest Sora probably shouldn’t be trusted all alone in a strange place, asked to see security footage from the bus depots and ferry docks and even insisted Sora would never go anywhere new without telling him first but nothing worked.

“He’s on the missing persons register. If we get any information, we’ll let you know,” was the same, bored response.

That left the bulk of the searching down to Riku. At first, members of the local community, Sora’s school friends and neighbours had helped a lot too. But as time went on, people moved on, and most of them accepted the official line that Sora had simply left. Some people, like the elderly couple next door and a few of Sora’s closer school friends still helped to put up posters or asked around when Riku asked them to, but no-one was actively looking anymore. It seemed everyone was content to simply wait for Sora to stroll home one day and apologise for being gone for so long.

Having finished school one year previous, Riku had spent much of the last few months debating about whether to leave Destiny Islands and extend his search to the nearby towns on the mainland. He had been working odd jobs here and there for people who needed someone young and strong to do menial labour and had been saving most of the money from it.

Riku told himself he was waiting until he had more money saved before leaving to search on the mainland, but the reality was he was stubborn. Stubborn that Sora would come home one day, and frightened about what would happen if he did and Riku wasn’t there.

“Excuse me?”

Riku started at the voice that suddenly spoke up next to him and turned. It was a young girl, maybe a couple of years younger than him, wearing a baggy jumper and large round glasses. She had a meek, almost sheepish expression on her face. “Sorry,” the girl apologised, “I was just wondering… is this the only market?”

Riku frowned in confusion, before it dawned on him. Ah. Tourist. “This is the food market.” He explained, sweeping his hand in a wide arc and gesturing at the various stalls. “It’s close to wrapping up though, I think you’re after the trade market?”

The girl brightened, tightening her grip on her shoulder bag’s strap. It seemed to be quite full, and a keychain in the shape of a black cat dangled from the zipper. “Yes! I’m a seamstress, so I was looking for cloth, decorations, stuff like that.”

“That’s on Fridays, they should be up and running by midday. So you’re only a little off,” Riku replied, offering her a reassuring smile. Destiny Islands’ markets drew a few tourists – most people came for the food markets, for the fresh fish and fruit indigenous to the islands, but some people liked the trade market that ran at the end of the week. Crafts were the main thing on sale, handmade talents and skills passed down from generation to generation.

“Well, good thing I’m here for the weekend then,” the girl smiled shyly at him. “Thank-you.”

“You’re welcome,” Riku returned. “Actually, before you go…” He held out Sora’s photograph and showed it to the girl. A long shot, but everyone was worth asking, in his opinion. “Have you seen this boy? It’s kind of an old photograph, but…”

“Ummm…” The girl frowned, biting at her bottom lip. “I… sorry,” she started.

Riku nodded, ignoring the usual small flutter of disappointment that came with every negative response he received. “It’s okay, he’s from around here so you probably wouldn’t have-“

“Can I see the photo a bit closer?” The girl interrupted, reaching for it.

Riku lifted an eyebrow, curious, and handed it to her. A small flame of hope flared to life in his chest.

She brought the photo close and frowned deeply at it, as if trying to puzzle out something. She was silent for a long moment. “I think I know this necklace,” she said at last.

Riku sat up straighter on the crate, alert and his heart hammering away in his chest. “You do?”

“Yes,” she said firmly, nodding once. “A while ago… I bumped into a guy wearing what I’m sure was the same one. I remember because I asked him where he got it.” She looked up and met Riku’s astonished eyes. “I love fashion, you see, and it looked so well made. He couldn’t remember where it was from, though, only that it was important…” she trailed off, glancing back down at the photo. “He might have been this guy? He was a lot older though…”

“That photo’s almost five years old,” Riku croaked, his voice strained. His blood was thundering in his ears. He’d never had someone who hadn’t met Sora before he went missing say anything like this. No-one ever recognised him, he was brushed off every single time. “He… he was fourteen when he went missing, that photo is from his fourteenth birthday.”

“Oh! That makes sense,” the girl smiled. “Yeah, he was about your age. I don’t know his name or too many other details, though…”

“Brown hair. Spiky. Big blue eyes. Stupidly friendly,” Riku rattled off, staring wide eyed at the girl. His palms pricked with sweat as he closed his hands into fists. _Please_ , he begged internally. _Please_ be him. Give me this.

“Not sure about hair or eyes, but he _was_ very friendly,” the girl offered, smiling. “He was very apologetic he couldn’t remember where his necklace was from to tell me.” She tilted her head at him, “is he a friend of yours?”

“My best friend,” Riku breathed out raggedly, suddenly slumping forwards as a surge of emotion constricted his chest and his eyes prickled. He uncurled his fists with effort and shoved them into hair, shaking.  “Sora. His name is Sora.”

“Sora…” She repeated, looking back down the photo once more before offering it back to Riku. “It suits him. I hope you find him.”

“Where was he?” Riku asked desperately, not looking back up yet as his vision blurred and swam before him. He sucked in a deep breath and held it. He could cry in a minute. First, he had to-

“Twilight Town.”

* * *

 

The next morning Riku was standing in the departure lounge for the ferry to the mainland. He shifted the rucksack on his back for the umpteenth time that hour, trying to dislodge some of his nervous energy.

Maybe this was a little reckless, catching the first ferry to Twilight Town because of what that girl had told him, but…

That necklace of Sora’s was one of a kind. Riku had given it to him years ago as a present when they were small children, and Sora was known for having worn it at all times ever since. Granted, there were probably other silver crown necklaces out there, but the girl seemed to be pretty confident it was the same one. Friendly, his age, with the same necklace? It was worth a try. Riku hadn’t had a shred of hope in years, he _had_ to chase this lead.

He glanced up at the large clock on the wall impatiently. Still twenty minutes until boarding started. He groaned and ran an impatient hand through his over long hair, shoving it out of his eyes temporarily, a bad habit from when he was younger.

 _“Why don’t you just cut it if you don’t want it in your eyes?”_ Sora had always used to ask when Riku huffed at his hair irritably. _“I’ll cut it for you!”_

 _“Absolutely not,”_ Riku would always refuse. _“Here, tie it back for me instead…”_

His hair had always grown much faster than Sora’s, which seemed to be content to settle in its wild bird’s nest shape and not grow much longer than that. Riku had spent the majority of his early teenage years letting his hair grow out long, eventually chopping it all off once Sora had run out of creative ways to tie it back. Only to then repeat the process.

 _“I don’t know why you’re cutting it off again tomorrow,”_ Sora had said once, _“personally, I think pigtails really suit you.”_

Riku smiled faintly at the memory. He wondered what Sora’s hair looked like now. Was it still wild and messy? More tame with age or worse? Was he still short, or had he had a late growth spurt?

And the pertinent question – why was Sora in Twilight Town in the first place? Did he really run away? Why hadn’t he ever come back home, or told Riku where he was?

Riku tightened his grip on his bag’s strap and forced himself to stop that train of thought. He’d spent too many nights letting his imagination run wild with the what-if’s and the endless questions with no answers. This was different. There was going to be good explanation, he just had to find Sora, and then everything would make sense.

_Ding-dong-ding-dong._

The announcement chime sounded over the departure lounge’s tinny speakers. Time to board.

* * *

 

When he was younger, Riku had had grand plans for travelling (with Sora in tow, of course.) He was going to leave the islands and see everything the mainland and the cities had to offer. He was going to experience the world beyond his small town on a small island where the weather was stuck permanently on sunny.

If Riku had known then what it was like travelling by ferry, by train and then by tram to eventually reach Twilight Town’s city centre, he might have reconsidered those travel plans. And he thought the market on a mid-summer morning was busy - it had nothing on the scrum of people shoving each other to catch the first train they saw.

Presently, he had spent almost an hour walking around the winding streets of Twilight Town. He was trying to locate the hotel he was staying in using his phone’s very out of date maps function and attempting to not completely lose his temper and lob the thing at a wall.

Glaring at the little blue arrow on his phone’s screen that seemingly couldn’t choose which direction it wanted to point in for longer than five seconds, Riku stomped down another cobbled street and eventually at the end of it found himself outside the Sunbeam Hotel.

Twilight Town was a popular destination, famous for its shopping district and the beach and boasting a beautiful sunset every evening, and so there were many hotels. Riku had been in too much of a rush to be fussy, picking the first one that had a room free that didn’t completely drain his budget. The Sunbeam Hotel was fairly small and family run, promoting friendly customer service and a well-reviewed restaurant.

Pocketing his phone, he entered through the large wooden double doors into reception. Sunlight streamed in through large windows, and the interior was furnished with oak and warm coloured furnishings. A large staircase sat at the back, and next to it was another large set of wooden doors with ‘restaurant’ written above in gold writing.

“Welcome to the Sunbeam Hotel, how can I help you?”

Riku turned to his left to be met with a girl around his age behind the reception’s counter. ‘Olette’ was written on the tag attached to her shirt.

“Uhh, yes, I have a room booked?” Riku replied, shrugging off his rucksack to pull out the booking confirmation paperwork he had printed out at the ferry’s departure lounge. He had booked the room on his phone, but the thing was old and the internet connection terrible. It was much less of a headache to fork out the fee for the printer than it was attempting to access his emails.

“Ahh, yes, Room 203, follow me!” Olette looked over his paperwork before selected a bronze key from a selection hanging on the wall behind her, stepping around the desk and beckoning for Riku to follow.

“Is this your first visit to Twilight Town?” She asked as she began climbing the staircase.

“Yeah.”

“Well I noticed you didn’t put a check-out date on your booking… which is absolutely fine of course! Are you here for an extended visit?”

They reached the top of the staircase and Olette turned left on the landing, heading down a corridor lined with doors to the hotel’s rooms.

“I’m uhh… looking for somebody,” Riku answered, reaching into his pocket for Sora’s photo. He had briefly entertained asking anybody he saw as soon as he reached Twilight Town but once he realised just _how many people_ there were he quickly revised that plan. Best to head to the hotel and settle in, then start hitting the streets. Might as well start with Olette. “He’s my best friend, he’s been missing for a while but I think he was last seen here in town. Have you seen him?”

Olette stopped outside the room door marked ‘203’ and looked down at the photo. “Hmmm… no, I don’t think so? I’m sorry,” she apologised, “but!” She brightened, “everyone here at the hotel and most of the folks in the town centre are super friendly, I’m sure someone will be able to help you find him! You should try asking the shop keepers, they see a lot of people, and hear most of the gossip.”

“I… thank-you,” Riku replied, feeling slightly off-kilter by her helpful response. Most people just said ‘no’ and then left it, rather than offering any advice.

Olette inserted the key into the door’s lock and opened it. “Here you are! Room 203! Your booking includes breakfast every day, but dinner is extra. You can book a table at the reception desk. I’m usually always there, or our concierge is in the evenings.”

Riku followed her into the room. It was small, but it was cosy and neat. “Thanks.”

“Oh, I’m sorry, I forgot to introduce myself. My name’s Olette,” she offered her hand. “You can call down to the desk and ask for me if you need anything.”

Riku shook her hand, “Riku.”

“We have maps for the town centre at the front desk too,” Olette said as she headed back into the hallway, “they should help you find the shopping district.” She offered him a bright, sunny smile, “I hope you find you friend!”

The corner of Riku’s mouth turned up slightly in reply, “yeah, so do I.”

“Well, enjoy your stay!”

* * *

 

It was well into the afternoon once Riku made it into Twilight Town’s shopping district (using one of the maps from the hotel reception, not his useless phone,) though it felt much later. Apart from in the morning, the sky in Twilight Town always seemed to be stained with pinks and oranges.

Riku had stopped only to grab some lunch from a sandwich shop nearby the hotel before hitting the streets to start searching. No time like the present.

Showing Sora’s photo to anyone who would stop and look was familiar territory, albeit a bit tiresome. Maybe it was because his hopes were higher than normal from what that girl at the market had said yesterday, but every negative response was weighing a little heavier than usual.

He decided to follow Olette’s advice and asked any shopkeeper he could find that wasn’t busy with customers. A couple of them were kind enough to offer to put up a poster if he brought them one, but nobody yet had any sightings or had heard anything.

Riku paused outside a small ice-cream shop that was advertising a flavour called ‘sea salt ice-cream’ which sounded disgusting, quite frankly. He was making a face at the display poster when a young man’s voice spoke up.

“Yo, do you wanna buy one or not?”

“Hm?” Riku turned to look at the guy at the ice-cream counter. He was roughly his age, with dirty blond hair in waves and a disgruntled expression. The name tag hanging at an angle on his apron said ‘Hayner’. “Uh… no. Actually, I’m looking for someone.”

“In an ice-cream shop?”

Riku gave the guy a weathered look, “here, this guy. The photo’s old though, he’d be around our age now.”

Hayner peered at Sora’s photo with a frown, “uhh… I _think_ I know this guy?”

Riku nearly dropped the picture in shock, “y-you do? Are you sure?” His heartrate picked up in anticipation, “his name is-“

“Oi!” Hayner interrupted, yelling over his shoulder into the back of the shop. “Pence! C’mere!”

Another young man, shorter and chubbier, wandered into view from the depths of the shop. His name tag was more neatly attached and read ‘Pence’. “What’s up?”

Hayner snatched Sora’s photo from Riku’s limp figures and waved it under Pence’s nose. “Is this that guy, what’s his name…”

Pence tilted his head at the photo, scrunching his nose in thought, “umm… oh! Is this Sora? Wow he looks super young here if it is.”

Riku stopped breathing. He slammed his hands down on the counter, causing both of the other boys to jump. He leaned forward eagerly. Someone knew. _They knew Sora._

“Yes! His name is Sora, please, where is he?”

Pence blinked at him. “Uhh, I’m not really sure, I don’t have his number. He performs in the shopping district sometimes, and-“

“Doesn’t he sing or something at Olette’s family’s place?” Hayner butted in.

“Yeah, and that!”

“Olette?” Riku repeated in a strangled voice, “Olette as in the girl who works at the Sunbeam Hotel?”

“That’s her, she works there to save money for college-“

“Better deal than what we’re doing,” Hayner grumbled.

“I guess you know her already?” Pence asked, ignoring his friend.

“I’m staying at the hotel,” Riku said, gripping the counter to keep himself focused as his mind ran wild. Performing? Singing? Is that what Sora had been doing this whole time? He sucked in a deep breath and held it in an effort to quell his racing thoughts. “I had no idea he’d be there…”

“Well that’s handy,” Pence said with a smile, sliding Sora’s photo over the counter towards Riku. “You should go ask her, she should have his number.”

“Why are you looking for him, anyways?” Hayner asked, cocking an eyebrow.

“He’s my best friend,” Riku managed after another deep breath, “he went missing a few years ago, I’ve been looking for him ever since.”

“Wow, really?” Pence looked surprised, before leaning forward with a curious glint in his eye, “so you’re not from around here? How’d you find out he was here? Did-“

Hayner cut him off with a hand on his shoulder, “okay detective, you can grill him later,” he looked back up at Riku, “you wanna split, huh?”

Riku nodded, heart in his throat, snatching up Sora’s photo and spinning on his heel, “thanks!” He called over his shoulder as he sprinted away.

* * *

 

Riku rounded the corner that led to a slight hill that sloped down towards the Sunbeam Hotel when he nearly collided with a young woman. “Sorry,” he grunted, trying to side-step around her when she caught his elbow, holding on tightly.

“Hey!” He protested, trying to tug his arm free. He did not have time for this right now.

“Are you looking for Sora?” The girl asked, her voice soft and wavering.

“What did you say?” Riku asked, pulling his arm free and turning to look at her more directly. She was a lot shorter than he was, quite petite. She was wearing a white sundress and had soft blonde hair.

She bit her lip, before lifting her eyes to look at Riku. She looked very sad. “I just wanted you to know… he might not seem himself. I’m so sorry.”

“What does that mean?” Riku demanded, thrown by the statement.

The young woman tucked her hair behind her ear and ducked her face down. “Just that. He might be different. I thought you should know. I- I’m really sorry.”

Before Riku could ask anything more, she turned and ran in the opposite direction from the hotel. Riku stood rooted to the spot for a moment, his mind whirling. What did she mean by that? Different? Did she know Sora, know RIku was looking for him?

As desperate as he was for answers, and he really wanted to demand them from her, he wanted to see Sora more. Whatever questions he had right now, surely Sora could answer them.

He jogged down the hill, putting the strange girl out of his mind for now.

Sora first.

* * *

 

Riku burst back through the double doors to the Sunbeam Hotel, his breath snatching in and out in sharp gasps. The concierge at the reception desk looked at him alarm. If he was at the desk instead of Olette, that might mean she had gone home, Riku thought with annoyance. “Is Olette still here?” He asked, panting. The concierge lifted a slightly shaky finger and pointed at the restaurant.

Riku nodded, walking at the briskest pace he could manage without just breaking into a run towards the hotel restaurant. He couldn’t regulate his breathing, even when he caught his breath back. It shuddered in and out of his lungs, the noise of it muted by the roaring in his ears.

Sora played in this hotel. _This_ hotel. He was alive, he was okay, and he wasn’t dead. Riku still had absolutely no idea why he was in a town on the mainland singing in a hotel restaurant without sending a single word back home but right now he didn’t really care. He would think about it later, demand the answers after he had seen Sora with his own eyes.

He pushed through the restaurant door and looked wildly around for Olette. The restaurant was still setting up for dinner, a couple of staff members were dotted around the dining room laying cutlery and placing menus and empty wine glasses. The waiter closest to him smiled apologetically, “I’m sorry, sir, but dinner isn’t serving for another hour…”

“I need to speak to Olette, is she here?” Riku demanded, trying to level his voice so he didn’t shout.

The man hesitated and Riku was just about to spin on his heel and go searching further into the restaurant when the man said, “she’s in the kitchen overseeing the dinner preparations… do you want me to fetch her, Mr…?”

“I’ll just go to her, thanks. Kitchen this way?” Riku replied briskly, not waiting for an answer or permission before hurrying towards to a set of white double doors to the left of the dining room. Kitchen equipment could be seen through the large round windows set into them. The waiter sputtered in protest, but Riku ignored him.

The kitchen was hot and noisy, chefs and cooking staff dashing between stations and barking orders to each other as prep work was well under way for the evening rush. They were all so busy they didn’t look up at the sudden intrusion, and Riku scanned over them quickly, looking for Olette.

There. She was standing next to another young woman who was chopping vegetables at a frantic pace, talking in cheery tones that were drowned out slightly by the clamour of the kitchen.

Riku stalked over and tapped her gently on the shoulder to get her attention. Olette turned and nearly jumped out of her skin.

“Oh my god! Riku! What?” She blinked at him, looking completely bewildered. “What are you doing in the kitchen? You can’t-“

“I need to talk to you,” Riku interrupted firmly, placing a hand on her shoulder and meeting her eye, his expression wild and earnest. “Please. It’s really important.”

Olette hesitated, still looking quite surprised and very confused. “… Okay,” she replied after a moment, her eyes searching his face. “Okay, let’s just, head back out then. We can talk outside,” she gestured to the kitchen doors, inviting Riku to walk on ahead of her.

“This way,” she said once they exited, looping her small hand around his forearm and tugging him gently into a corner of the restaurant where there weren’t any tables. Instead of the usual cream plush carpet that was on most of the floors in the hotel, this area had wooden flooring, a scattering of chairs and potted plants dotted around. “What is it? If you need something, I’m sure the concierge could help! I’ve got a bunch of stuff to do here before we open for dinner…”

“Does a guy called Sora perform here?” Riku interrupted again. He knew he was being rude, and a little forceful, but he couldn’t bring himself to care at the moment, not when he was this close.

Olette looked even more baffled. “Sora? Yeah he sings here a couple of nights a week, he should be here tonight I think…”

Riku’s heart skipped and jumped in his chest. His hand dove into his pocket and pulled out Sora’s photograph so forcefully the worn paper almost tore. “I know I showed you this earlier, but the friend I’m looking for, his name is Sora. He was fourteen here. I know you said you hadn’t seen him, but he’d be eighteen now. So do you think… are they…?” His throat squeezed and choked off his words, suddenly seized by the horrible fear that this was all just a wild goose chase and his Sora wasn’t the Sora that sang here at all.

Olette looked at him silently for a moment, before her confused expression melting into something warm and understanding. “Oh, it’s about your friend. You’re right, it is important,” she said kindly, reaching out for Sora’s photo to look at it again. “Well, our Sora definitely has messy brown hair! And big baby blues. Gosh if this is him he looks so young here…”

“He… he’s sweet. Friendly,” Riku forced himself to say. “Very friendly. Would make friends with an old lady he helped to cross the street once and go round her house every Sunday for tea. Bright. Cheerful.” The corner of Riku’s mouth twitched up in a wobbly half-smile. “Bit of a dummy.”

Olette laughed merrily. “Sounds about right! Wow, I can’t believe you found your long-lost best friend in our hotel,” she grinned, her eyes sparkling. “I tell you, best customer service in all of Twilight Town.”

Riku’s answering laugh was quieter, and just a bit watery. If Olette noticed how his eyes were shining and damp, she didn’t say anything, bless her.

He ran his thumb shakily over Sora’s photo and took a minute to just breathe and calm his racing heart and frazzled nerves. He was here. He was definitely here and Riku could _see_ him and _talk_ to him and finally make sure he was okay and find out why he had left the islands and what on Earth he was doing here.

Olette touched his forearm again gently. “As I said, he should be here tonight. The restaurant opens in an hour, and he’s always here for opening so he should be here soon,” she told him gently, “if you want, you can sit at one of the tables and wait for him. I’ll ask one of the girls to bring you something to drink,” she winked at him, “calm your nerves.”

Riku dragged both his sweaty palms over his face and blew out a long, juddery breath. “That’d be great. Thank-you. Really, I appreciate it.”

Olette squeezed his arm softly and led him to a small table at the back of the restaurant. “Here, I’ll let everyone know so they won’t bother you. What would you like to drink, water? Tea?” She gave him a cheeky grin, “something stronger?”

“Tea, please,” Riku replied, his voice still slightly shaky. He hardly ever drank alcohol, and while a stiff drink seemed more tempting than usual right now, he really needed a clear head for this. He thanked Olette again as she nodded at his request and moved away to speak to the wait staff. Really, he owed her a big tip for her kindness. He’d write an amazing review for her family’s hotel and see if he could help jumpstart her college savings or something.

Half an hour later, he’d drunk two cups of tea and was halfway through a third (a waiter kept graciously reappearing and refilling his cup with a seemingly never ending teapot,) and he was considering walking a quick lap of the restaurant to work off his nervous energy when the backdoor to the restaurant clattered open loudly.

“Sorry, only me!” A young man’s voice called out, sounding cheerful and not at all apologetic.

Riku whipped his head around to look at the newcomer, and felt like his heart stopped dead. The teacup slipped from his numb fingers to land with a dull thud on the table, the last dregs of tea spilling out and staining the tablecloth. He felt a chill spread from head to toe, goosebumps rising on his skin.

The young man a few feet away wasn’t facing Riku directly, reaching behind him to pull the door closed. He was dressed in red and black clothes just this side of baggy, and had a battered guitar case slung over one shoulder. Brown hair fell into gentle spikes, and, as Riku could see as he faced into the room, it fell into his eyes – a vivid shade of blue.

The chair Riku was sitting on wobbled dangerously on its legs as he shoved himself suddenly to his feet. “S-“ his voice seized on a wheezy exhale. He forced his lungs to suck in air. Paused. Tried again. “Sora?”

“Hmm?” The young man turned to face him, cocking his head.

And there, around his neck, was the crown necklace Riku had given his best friend when he was six all those years ago. It was still bright and clean, clearly well cared for, twinkling gently under the fluorescent restaurant lighting. Riku remembered that crown being so big on a young Sora, how it hung heavily on the middle of his chest. It seemed almost tiny now, settling neatly between adult Sora’s collar bones.

“It’s you. Christ, it’s really you…” Riku breathed, feeling oddly faint. “Sora.”

Sora’s confused expression eased into one that was warm and sweet and oh-so-familiar, “that’s me,” he agreed.

“I…” Riku stammered, still frozen to the spot. He had envisioned finding Sora again in so many different ways, what he’d do, what he’d say, and now that he’d finally found him the only thing he could do was stand and stare, transfixed. He was so enraptured he barely noticed Sora asking him a question, and he gave himself a little shake to dislodge the cotton slowly filling his brain. “What?”

“What’s your name?” Sora asked again patiently, his smile seemed almost amused, teasing. “You seem to know mine already.”

The hazy shock that had enveloped Riku when he’d first laid eyes on Sora again immediately dissipated. Alarm bells rang quietly in the back of his head. “What?” He repeated, his heart thudding loudly in his chest. “It’s me? Riku? I- I know it’s been ages but-“

“Riku huh?” Sora replied, tilting his head. He crossed his arms and rested his chin on one hand in thought. Riku’s thudding heart stuttered at the painfully familiar mannerism.

“Have… we met? You seem really familiar.”

 _It’s only been four years_ , Riku screamed internally. Both hardly any time at all and the longest stretch imaginable. He scanned Sora’s face desperately, finding no trace of a lie. Sora had always been so honest. Had he just completely forgotten him in that time? Had he really just ran away when he was fourteen and forgotten Riku?

_“He might not seem… himself. I’m so sorry.”_

The blonde girl’s voice spoke up in his mind suddenly, escalating his increasing panic. Is this what she meant by not himself? Riku’s vision greyed worryingly and his breathing rasped in and out with difficulty as his lungs started to seize.

“Hey, you okay? Sit down…” Sora’s voice in his ears. Sora’s hands gently grasping his upper arms and encouraging him to sit back down on the chair. Sora’s necklace swinging gently around his neck as he leaned closer, twinkling.

“Are you okay?” Sora asked again.

_No. No I’m not okay. I finally found you again and you don’t remember me. Why don’t you remember?_

It was Friday when Riku felt hope shatter.

**Author's Note:**

> I'm also on Twitter! @Emlee_J


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